excerpts from Harari, Vandermeulen, and Casanave’s “Sapiens” — most human communication is still gossip our ability to create an imagined reality out of words — Gods, nations and companies, learning to be afraid of new dangers takes time humans | come out of the womb like molten glass large brains, using tools and great learning abilities superior technology and social skills complex social structures…

excerpts from Abouet and Oubrerie’s “Aya” — Wash a dog’s eyes one day it’ll bite you I’ve come here today to cast out all evil spirits! For us black people France is a land of pain, not plenty She’s got a hard heart, dêh! You’re not wanted What a hungry belly! In the Name of Jesus, I rebuke you! I’ve…

excerpts from O’Donnell & Romero’s “Modesty Blaise” — Far away in another time the flung beach-bag unsights Roderic Modesty dives low thanks for looking after me, princess when you can’t move in quietly you need a good noisy distraction hope Willie remembers we’re playing for keeps when a man goes down he has to stay down Willie’s surprise attack is…

excerpts from James Baldwin’s “The Fire Next Time” — Time catches up with kingdoms in the twinkling of an eye that suffering and dancing country morally bankrupt and politically unstable their dimes and quarters merciless formulation for generations predictable wishful distortions spiritual aridity of my life conscious blacks, who must, like lovers all your lives insist on, or create, the consciousness of…

excerpts from A. R. Luria’s “The Mind of a Mnemonist” — the psychology laboratory devoted to the study of one man S’s phenomenal memory he lives in a web of transactions things he wished to forget while conversing with him found herself in a strange wonderland experienced synesthetic reactions of light and color when he listened to someone’s voice literal senses…

excerpts from Rebecca Hall and Hugo Martínez’s “Wake” — I look for their testimony I find this: June 13: “died a girl Slave №9.” June 14: “died a Woman №10.” June 15: “died a Man Slave №11.” [T]he decisions they made and why they made them: keep them in coffle onboard a slave ship keep a close eye on them fetch a good price…

excerpts from rupi kaur’s “milk and honey” — it’s your voice i don’t want to be friends your voice alone drives me nothing is safer than the sound of you build me into your life lie me down lay me open like a map the rest of your life if you are not enough for yourself unknowingly and everywhere abandon…

excerpts from James Baldwin’s “I Am Not Your Negro” — In this country for a dangerously long time never seen any genuine confrontation so fat and so sleek, and so safe, and so happy, and so irresponsible, and so dead. God forgives murder in some bizarre way, to be a milestone has made them criminals and monsters dreaming of anything like “the final…

excerpts from Warsan Shire’s “teaching my mother how to give birth” — my father was a drunk he married my mother hands were slow but urgent i know a shame that shrouds, totally engulfs why did you not warn her? my mother’s remains were never buried scent of a woman completely on fire i have my mother’s mouth and my father’s eyes on…

excerpts from J. Krishnamurti’s “Freedom from the Known” — follow the words on the page forget all you have ever thought about yourself fundamentally interested in oneself no fear is capable of great love so much anxiety, misery and conflict because we are afraid of being nobody the centre creates the space between person and person | a scratch on the mind…

excerpts from Fatimah Asghar’s “If They Come for Us” — I live in a country whose sun is war we keep rotating around its warmth Here we all become towelheads, amorphous fears praying to a brown god 1947: the cannons sound during Ramzan & everyone holds their breath We aren’t at war. Just neighbors who like to kill each other …

excerpts from Grewal et al’s “Charting the Journey” — ‘just weeds’, she said ‘what about seeds?’ Black woman catapulted globally… refused out of a desire to keep value of having plenty (relatively) And here too the people with power remained silent burn our lips Lay down and I struggled with it and panic and hurt and fear biggest and most lasting impact common blood…

excerpts from Chris Abani’s “The Face” — Reality is held in Igba Iwa, the calabash of existence an unbroken chain of purpose stretching the way light shimmers through the water calmness, serenity, sensitivity, insight, inspiration — a river, ugwu bu nkwanye nkwanye — respect is reciprocal maternal grandmother’s lineage was Strong, traditional culture from Oxford no less …

excerpts from June Jordan’s “Lyrical Campaigns” — What kind of person could kill a Black child and then kill another Black child and then just to sit there/target [a] man’s body at auction This great American poet of democracy a burning river as cosmos formerly citizens of some acceptable position but there was a child went forth everyday one full Black lily above the…

excerpts from Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o’s “Decolonising the Mind” — deprived of the use of his language Nyaangwĩcũ is danced on one leg cut off from his people ‘an impulse’, ‘an unrehearsed’ act of ‘personal’ generosity to cut all links with this homeland neo-slaves, are openly announcing the theft and robbery of the nation home even more divided an instrument of colonial policy leg…

excerpts from Víctor Terán’s “Poems/ Diidxado’” — The earth is like a great comal above God’s hot coals in my hand it lies dying the turtle dove that dreamed of cooing you to sleep Just yesterday I was a bell joyfully coming and going Why is it birthed in me to knife the heart Now bring me the…

excerpts from Jay Ghee’s “A Course on Self-Knowledge” — The thinker is the thought dualistic and conflict ‘reality’ to the senses endless rows of wandering thoughts… Don’t go there! you are looking outwards wrong direction molds your ‘ego person’ what-we-are-not is ‘me’ take a break abandon words as concepts in our minds life will unfold treasures dissolving any I-concept …

excerpts from Grace Nichols’s “Lazy Thoughts of a Lazy Woman” — 1. I sing the body reclining A bundle of bones The lolling breast Even the undeserving Stars are the nipples of angels The black persistent blooming I add our butter love 2. Granny please comb my hair Oooh I’m going to break/dance How can I persuade it to rite a poem/ reclaim the sands heavy-booted…

excerpts from Kwame Nkrumah’s “Consciencism” — No need to continue to explain the world by reference to the gods the people, the body, and the soul of the nation a colony is any territory mounting for a hundred years or more indulged in history infected by European ideals: Plato’s anti-egalitarianism bow of Heraclitus Anaximander was not a lotus-eater however glibly Berkeley said neo-colonialism is negative action playing possum ferret out Janus-faced…